Skip to main content

Footsteps for the fallen

rDear Dad,

Today has been the single best use of this day in the past 9 years. And I hope my story makes you proud of your little girl.

Today at 12 noon being 1am on the 7th of March in NZ I set off on a half marathon around the Silverstone F1 track in England. I clearly had DAD printed on my left hand, my nails painted red and black and a capital A on my right hand. Who would have thought I'd be in Cantab colours!

This was all the inspiration I needed to get around the track. I set off at a strong pace making the first 2 miles in 18.45. I was supposed to be running a 10 minute mile pace but like most long runs I needed the loo and that spurs me on. I stopped for the loo at 2.5 miles and this put me off entirely as the break must have been 4+ minutes. Alas I took the inclines, hairpin turns and celebrity participants in my stride. At 9 miles I felt strong as I ran down a gravel hill towards the last stretch to reach  the final lap on the track. I spotted my good friends Holly and Harv and the straight ahead seems easy and inspired. To have their support on the day was just brilliant and made me feel really humble. What I had ahead of me was a mere 3 miles which I was determined not to walk in. I crossed the finish line storming the last 200m in 2:19:25.

I wished now I had pushed harder as I have a few miles left in me and fell behind my first Half record of 2:15:05. Alas I felt strong and was inspired.

Afterall I set of on this journey with a vague plan to get to 2:10 time but with my pathetic winter training regime I had let that go. The 22nd of February's devestating earthquake in Christchurch gave me purpose. Having raised £1500 before the race and with £500 matched from work and £400 in Gift Aid I was feeling positive about my contribution from afar. Despite the pain I read in Kerry's emails of the displacement and rebuilding and the loss of my school friend, I feel Christchurch will come back to be the city you introduced me to that first time in 1986. I know I'm excited about being there later in the year for the RWC.

The journey back to London was also a highlight for me sharing a carriage with a delightful 69 year old cyclist and traveller and a student of Christ Church College of Oxford who was also raising money for the Christchurch Appeal to support their name sake.

Sometimes the days you dread are indeed the days that are filled with delight. I've topped it off by baking some cupcakes for my team...thanks to my darling neighbours for the eggs ;o)

Hope I made you proud today Dad.
Your Little Girl x


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

My My Myanmar

I have been touched, pinched, squeezed and had my back rubbed as I was sick. Myanmar is one phenomenal place which I have so much hope for. Hope for democracy, hope for development and hope for conservation, all in a gradual process without losing its authenticity. I have felt safe, with my large amounts of cash (remember no ATM’s so budgeting became a real past time of all travellers not just the “budget” ones) and in pilgrimaging crowds, in villages and on rickety hill top roads, travelling solo or in a crowd. Not once did I fear for my personal safety or that of my belongings. I had to stop myself on the first day from being so travel weary and closed. I had to trust. I had to open up and Myanmar may well have taught me one of my greatest lessons on my Big Adventure. captive in Myanmar There were moments of democratic desire, like an aged village monk carrying a bamboo log who stopped me to ask “Do you know Aung San?” to which I replied quietly knowing it was a very c...

The day I saw the Polish countryside

After taking a night stop off in Warsaw to ensure I got a speed train for 3 hours to Krakow I was directed to platform 3. I got on and 6 hours later I am still not in Krakow. But I have had the privilege to see the beauty of the Polish countryside. It’s lush and green. The sun is shining and my mood has lifted along with it despite missing a day in a city I have been fascinated by since my early days in London.  The rail roads are simple and the trains and the children squealing out the windows remind me of Hollywood films depicting happy children departing for respite from the war.  Again I have been a cabin this time with the same space as yesterday but with 4 seats each side. No-one deared speak to me today! The farms are orderly and attempts at growing hay in the wettest summer the Poles have seen in years are well underway. It seems simple here and its definitely very appealing. I can see why my Polish friends speak so happily of life in Poland. Or maybe it’s the news ...

Hills of His Holiness

The state of Himachal Pradesh is one of mountains and rivers, winding roads and toy trains. Here are a few of the famous tourist highlights I enjoyed between 10 hour bus journeys! Shimla Famed as one of the great Raj Era Hill Stations where ladies of the Raj spent monsoon summers sheltering from the heat, I had to see this. In my experience this is anything but a shelter from the heat! On arrival you are deposited in a new bus station 8 km from the town forcing you to use either the public bus (R10) or a  taxi (R250) neither takes you to the top of town or even close to a hotel. So I opted for the R10 bus. They deposited me at the bottom of the hill. Porters were waiting at the bottom but how hard could it be? Hard. I walked for 3 hours in the hot sun with my 20+kg trying to find a nice clean hotel room, eventually ending up on the ground floor of Spars Lodge. You can’t open the windows due to monkeys so the task of finding a room in Indian summer season is hard. Really th...